Sharee, Annette and Lindsay Page, two sisters and a sister-in-law from Davis County, Utah, share the same last name, the same faith and, now, the same battle against cancer.
Sixteen years ago, when Lindsay Page married Sharee and Annette’s older brother, Ryan, she never would’ve imagined that someday she would be joined by two of her sisters-in-law in the fight of their lives. But the Page sisters, who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, don’t believe their shared battle is a coincidence.
“Just one person going through cancer is inspiring when you see these people that are so positive and faithful,” Lindsay Page said. “But the fact that the three of us have it has really caught the attention of the media and to me, I just wonder if it’s a missionary opportunity, maybe, to share the gospel and give people hope.”
“What are the odds that three sisters in a family have cancer at the same time?” Annette Page said. “And we’ve had so many opportunities to share our testimonies and to share the gospel. … We’ve been able to share a message of hope and faith, and I don’t think we would’ve gotten the ears of so many people if it was just one of us.”
Lindsay Page, a mother of four children, was originally diagnosed in January 2015 with a rare angiosarcoma, a cancer of the inner lining of blood vessels. In the beginning the cancer was only found in her spleen, which is rare because angiosarcoma can be found in any part of the body. Her spleen was removed and she appeared to be free of tumors. She was treated with six months of chemotherapy and enjoyed six months of good scans. However, in February of 2016, the cancer resurfaced, this time in her liver.
Meanwhile, Lindsay’s sisters-in-law, Annette and Sharee Page, have been “attached at the hip” since graduating from high school. The two sisters, who are both in their mid-30s, have visited every continent with the exception of Antarctica together and over 55 different countries.
In March, Annette Page was diagnosed with breast cancer. Two weeks later, after noticing a lump in her own breast, Sharee told Annette who immediately thought, "There is no way."
“I also just thought, ‘There has to be a reason,’” Annette Page said. “This wouldn’t be happening with (all of) us together if there wasn’t something extra special that we were supposed to learn.”
Sharee Page was also diagnosed with breast cancer.
“When I was diagnosed, it was almost hilarious because it was too comical, too ironic to be real,” Sharee Page said.
It was real and, although in reality the diagnosis is anything but funny, the Page sisters have approached the situation with a sense of humor.
“We’re sent to this earth to be happy and ‘man is that he might have joy,’” Sharee Page said. “And you can either cry about your situation or you can look to find the humor in life, and I prefer to be happy. I find that the more that I can find humor in things, the easier it is to be happy.”
They have also relied on their faith.
“It’s everything,” Sharee Page said. “Without the gospel, I don’t know how people go through hard things. The only reason … it’s bearable in time is because I have an eternal perspective and I know that this life we were sent here to be tested, we were sent here to have challenges that will refine us and help us become more like God.”
Annette and Sharee’s father, Steven, is an institute instructor at the Salt Lake University Institute of Religion, and it's clear in speaking with the sisters that the gospel has always been taught in their home. Meanwhile, Lindsay emphasized that her parents taught her principles from a young age that have helped throughout this process.
“I was raised in the gospel so my parents just always taught me that I have a Heavenly Father and that he loves me so that’s been ingrained in my heart,” Lindsay Page said.
One talk in particular, given by Elder Neal A. Maxwell, titled “But for a Small Moment,” has given Lindsay Page comfort. In the talk, Elder Maxwell says, “We may at times, if we are not careful, try to pray away pain or what seems like an impending tragedy, but which is, in reality, an opportunity. We must do as Jesus did in that respect — also preface our prayers by saying, 'If it be possible,' let the trial pass from us — by saying, 'Nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt,' and bowing in a sense of serenity to our Father in Heaven’s wisdom, because at times God will not be able to let us pass by a trial or a challenge. If we were allowed to bypass certain trials, everything that had gone on up to that moment in our lives would be wiped out. It is because he loves us that at times he will not intercede as we may wish him to.”
“I love that,” Lindsay Page said. “Just knowing that we will have trials in our lives, all will, some are health and some aren’t. Some are emotional or mental or physical. And whatever they are, it’s OK to pray and ask him to take them from us, but if not, then thy will be done. And I loved that because I do feel like this has been an opportunity and I would be sad if I had prayed it away last year and I didn’t get to learn what I have learned in this year and a half.”
The three sisters face something they have never faced before and yet, there is an absence of fear and a complete faith and trust in God.
“I’m not saying I want to die but I’m not afraid to die,” Annette Page said. “I would know that whatever is supposed to happen is the Lord’s plan and it’s part of my plan and what I’m supposed to accomplish. … And I can’t imagine not having that comfort and that hope that there’s something more than this … that there’s a bigger plan helps so much and brings so much peace.”
“I don’t want to die,” Sharee Page said. “I’d love to live until I’m 90 and have a family and everything, but at the same time I look at my life and think, ‘I’ve done more in my 34 years than most people do in their entire lives and so if it was my time to go, if God said ‘Your work here is done, time to move on to the next life,’ I would be totally content because I would say ‘OK, I’ve lived a good life and I’ve experienced so much. I’m ready.’”
Email: mjones@deseretdigital.com